How much have you learned over this past year?

Am I a good teacher or do I get an ‘F’ for effort during the last year? The best way to find out is to see how much you have learned from this column. Good luck in the Q and A test.

Q- 95% of patients with Type 2 diabetes are obese. Obesity, diabetes and the complications of these diseases will eventually cripple this nation’s health care system.

Q- Today 85% of seafood used in North America is imported and much of it is farm-raised. Small fish contain the least contaminates.

Q – Zona Plus is a computerized device that helps to lower blood pressure without medication. The idea resulted from research on fighter pilots and the medical problems that result from extreme G-forces.

Q – 100,000 milligrams of intravenous Vitamin C given for several days can cure meningitis, encephalitis, measles, death from a poisonous snake, and prevent paralysis in patients diagnosed with poliomyelitis.

Q – If you’re taking a calcium supplement it’s also prudent to take Vitamin D and Vitamin K2 which directs calcium into bone, rather than coronary arteries.

Q – High intensity focused ultrasound is a new treatment for prostate cancer if the Gleason score is low and the malignancy confined to the prostate gland.

Q – A report from the Cleveland Clinic says that there is no scientific evidence that antibiotics are needed before dental procedures if patients have undergone total joint replacement, although they’re commonly prescribed by dentists.

Q – Ascaris lumbricoides looks like a garden worm and infects 25% of the world’s population.

Q – A CT scan of the abdomen produces 500 X more radiation than a single chest X-ray and 1,000 times that of a dental x-ray or bone mineral density test.

Q – Hemochromatosis is a genetic condition in which there is too much iron in the body. This disease affects 1.5 million North Americans, but only 10% will develop symptoms. Vitamin C should not be taken if patients have this condition as this vitamin increases the absorption of iron from the bowel.

Q – Testicular cancer rates have been rising, 42% in the last 25 years. Currently it’s the most common cause of malignancy in males between 15 and 35 years of age. Men must get used to examining their testes, just as women examine their breasts for lumps.

Q – The kinetic energy imparted by rotating blades of a power mower is three times the muzzle velocity of a .357 Magnum pistol. This power can fire a rock at people nearby on the grass at the speed of 100 miles an hour inflicting serious eye injuries.

Q – Studies in mice show that when given laxatives for four months, degeneration of intestinal nerves occurs. In humans, a high fiber diet usually causes stools to float.

Q – A dog’s nose has 220 million cells that detect odours compared to five million in humans. This is why their sense of smell is so sensitive. They can detect cancer better than dermatologists, surgeons or plastic surgeons.

Q – 10% of North Americans have gallstones. If they are not causing symptoms they are best left to the crematorium.

Q – Every year 100,000 deaths are due to prescription drugs. Dead bodies do not result from the use of natural remedies.

Q – A university survey revealed that 80% of students believed that their parents did not have sex.

Q – Dr. Sydney Bush has shown that 6,000 milligrams of Vitamin C and 5,000 milligrams of lysine can prevent and reverse hardening of coronary arteries. But this natural remedy is collecting dust due to the closed minds of cardiologists and medical journals.

Q – Some researchers believe the PSA test for prostate cancer sometimes diagnoses cancers that might never require treatment. Unnecessary treatment may result in complications, such as urinary incontinence and impotence.

Q – Dr. Steven Havas, Professor of Epidemiology at the University of Maryland, reports that the number of deaths from excess salt is equivalent to a commuter jet plane crashing every day in the U.S.

All these questions are correct. Congratulations if you passed and all the best for a happy and healthy 2014.